Three Blind Mice by Agatha Christie

My Synopsis:

An enticing novelette about newly married, first time guesthouse operators who find themselves and their 4 guests at the center of a murder investigation. The story features an unlikely assortment of characters and their awkward interactions- Christie’s signature- which motivates the reader to finish in one sitting if time permits. Molly Davis, an optimistic entrepreneur; Giles Davis, her supportive husband; Christopher Wren, a flamboyant young lad; Mrs. Boyle, a stiff ex-military operative; Major Metcalf, a peculiar off-duty officer; Mr. Paravacini, a creepy uninvited guest; and Sergeant Trotter, the investigator sent by Scotland Yard to identify the killer. Three Blind Mice is a wonderful introduction to Agatha Christie mysteries. It offers a perfect balance of dialogue, thrill, and plot. An easy yet comprehensive read. Only she could take an original nursery rhyme and turn it into one of the most famous literary pieces of all time- with an eerie twist.

My Take:

This is the first Agatha Christie book I had read in a long time. After a shopping spree, I met my husband at Barnes & Noble and felt compelled to search for Agatha Christie in the Mystery/Thriller section as I waited for him. I chose to select Midwinter Murder since it seemed fit with the change of season to the colder months and the aesthetic of the purple and blue cover with a gorgeous Victorian mansion caught my attention. I assumed I would be reading about a murder of an aristocratic family member, and was excited to read the introduction of Christmas at Abney Hall. I was surprised to find out that was a memoir of Agatha Christie’s fond childhood of her Christmas holidays spent with the Wattses- family friends of hers. The following tale was called Three Blind Mice, and it became obvious that I had purchased a series of short stories titled Midwinter Murder.

Three Blind Mice started off on a bizarre note. The setting was a decrepit guest house where a likely perpetrator stalked requesting to see a woman. At this point I was concerned that my initial feeling of the novel involving sophisticated characters and mansions was completely false, but I continued to give it a chance. After reading the following chapter about a young couple that inherited a mansion from the wife’s deceased aunt, I knew there was hope it would fit the narrative I was longing for. The couple decided to turn this inheritance into a guest house. By the time they had booked their first 3 guests, a harsh blizzard fell upon the area, delaying their arrivals.

The first guest to arrive was everything I wanted in a Christie character- the ostentatious and dramatic Christopher Wren, whom due to engaging in pleasantries with Molly, became the object of resentment and jealousy from Giles. The second guest to arrive in the middle or the storm was Mrs. Boyle, the complete opposite personality of Mr. Wren, who left no stone unturned of petty complaints towards her hosts, whom she assumed were seasoned in the hospitality industry. She is the type of acrimonious woman any reader would abhor; however, I gained satisfaction in her strained relationships with the rest of the group. From Giles standing up to her, Mr. Wren making fun of her, and Paravacini catching her off guard while making ill comments about him, she is indeed the perfect character to add spice to the mix. Her condescending thoughts regarding Wren and Metcalf’s breakfast schedules were also amusing to read. Major Metcalf was the last expected guest introduced, and offered a normalcy Wren could not. He woke up early and volunteered to shovel snow with Giles. He was unproblematic and polite. The next person introduced was Paravacini, a random stranger who showed up in the middle of the night during the blizzard, begging for a place to stay after being stranded in his car. Classified as a foreigner who bounced around rather than walked, wore makeup to seemingly conceal his old age, and would make inappropriate comments to whoever he would creep upon was another person added by Christie to enhance the wackiness of the group along with Wren, although much more unsympathetically. He made Molly uncomfortable unlike Wren.

After receiving a peculiar phone call from the police one day while Giles was shoveling snow and doing outdoor chores, Molly learned that a Sergeant Potter was deployed to the Manor to discuss a matter and would be arriving at any moment. The moments that lead to his arrival were very suspenseful. Everyone reacted differently to the news that a police officer was on the way. Metcalf reacted the most suspicious, appearing to grow angry, although I also figured he was probably distraught by the situation taking place at the guesthouse he was spending money to stay at. Then at the height of anticipation the Sargent arrived through the window wearing skis, causing Mrs. Boyle to scoff. She thought how unlikely for a civil servant to have such a talent navigating the snow. Potter explained his reason for his arrival- the Mansfield Manor being the expected next location the murderer would strike- and the news was also brought to the attention of the other guests. Now everyone was presumed guilty.

Unbeknownst to everyone, the secondary victim of the Three Blind Mice was Mrs. Boyle, as she sat on her favorite rose-colored throne in the drawing room. It was clever the way Christie had built the tension towards the strike. She was frustrated with the lackluster radio content that had featured a segment on infants. As she fumbled with the programs, the radio suddenly switched to a sinister-sounding psychologist talking about fear. I imagined Mrs. Boyle being startled by this. She was then approached from behind by an unknown person and strangled with her own belt while the audio was turned up to drown out her struggle. As remarked at this was, I found it rather odd that she was murdered under the watchful eye of a police officer. It is also unbelievable that anyone would want to be alone following the announcement that any of your house mates could well likely be a killer; however, if anyone would not be scared or believe this crazy scenario it would be her. Her sheer lack of cowardliness was her own demise in my opinion.

At this point everyone was speculating one another to be the culprit. I did not really peg Mr. Wren to be the killer. He seemed far too emotional and unsure of himself to be cold-blooded. He also seemed to have a soft spot for Molly and would not want to continue to see her in distress. Her husband being onto him from the beginning also would have made it too obvious in my opinion for him to not be responsible. I had an inkling since his arrival that Sergeant Potter fit the profile of the killer the most. He arrived very strangely- quite unprofessionally- he made distressing comments to Molly such as 'the killer must really be enjoying themself', and he wanted everyone to reenact the timeline of Mrs. Boyle’s murder as if that would help to solve it. Furthermore, Three Blind Mice had me reminisce of And Then There Were None. The murderer ended up being the civil servant of law enforcement of the group- the Judge. Potter’s significance in the story seemed to fit the narrative Christie had gone for before. I was correct in my prediction, as Sergeant Potter, who lied about his identity and being a police officer, revealed himself to be the killer before he was about to obliterate Molly, and was caught by Major Metcalf- the real law enforcement agent sent undercover.

If I could change anything about Three Blind Mice, I would probably suggest there be a more incredulous climax, although I was still satisfied with the plot. I thought the story ended on a rather charming note, with Christopher entering the room to announce the pie was burning in the oven, bringing Molly’s attention back to the normalcy of everyday cooking. If there is a film adaptation of Three Blind Mice as there was for And Then There Were None, I would totally watch it.

Would Recommend: 9/10

11/13/2022